Overview:

Stuart Mortimer was born in Scotland and now lives in Hampshire, England where he has a large, well-equipped workshop. There he teaches, demonstrates, holds workshops and hosts woodturning clubs.

In 1969 Stuart got his first lathe and from that point he was hooked. Like most turners he turned at school and built on that beginning, learning to cut properly along the way. He soon found that he had a flair for turning and after retiring he entered and won several National competitions. He began to write for the “Practical Woodworking” magazine and from that point on he was on “the circuit.” He turned professional in 1992 and has enjoyed teaching and demonstrating throughout the U.K., Europe, Scandinavia and the USA.

Stuart holds the Authenticated World Record for the largest bowl turned from one piece of wood. This was turned at the American Woodworker show in Philadelphia and Detroit in 1997. In that endeavor his friend Steve Blenk from Seattle assisted him. Stuart is on the Register of the Worshipful Company of Turners and is a member of the Association of Woodturners of Great Britain as well as the American Association of Woodturners.

Many of Stuart’s pieces are sculptured and demonstrate twists and open weave patterns of varying complexities. He uses many hardwoods and burr either by themselves or in combination.

Morning Session:

Stuart began his demonstration using a skew to rough out a 2x2x12 inch cylinder. The profiling tip of the skew was used first. He broke the surface of the wood with the skew at each end of the piece to prevent chip-outs. Then three cuts were made: #1 – V-cut, #2 – convex and #3 – concave. Next he showed the marking out in preparation for the formation of a twist. A small countersunk hole was made on the flattened end of the piece. A hole was then drilled with the gouge through the countersunk location. The hole was drilled to the depth of the length of the gouge. The twist was then marked out. The width of the material was marked off along the length of the twist portion of the piece. Each division was then divided into four sections. The length of the piece was marked off in four quadrants. Then the pitch lines were drawn single and double pitch. The twist (pitch) lines were then sawed in preparation for carving. A specially ground gouge was used to cut a groove along the saw lines forming the twist. A rasp was then used in the spiral cut to deepen the twist. Last an Arbortech tool was used to widen and deepen the twist.

Stuart then used a small handsaw to enlarge the spiral grooves and extend them into the hole previously drilled down the center of the piece. The Arbortech was again used to deepen the twist and to round off their edges. A palm plane can also be used to round the edges. The twist was deepened to expose the center hole thus forming the open twist. The twist can be cleaned up using 60 or 80 grit sanding cloth torn into strips. To do the ends of the twist you roll the paper to give it a cylindrical shape.

Next Stuart showed a triple twist in preparation for making a goblet. A 2x2x12 inch piece was placed between centers. It was rounded with a roughing out bowl gouge and then cleaned up with a skew. The piece was reversed between centers and the end that was in the chuck was rounded and the entire piece trued up. A small portion of the tailstock end was parted off and a countersunk hole placed in the end. A #1 cut was used to define the top of the goblet (tailstock end) and the base of the goblet (headstock end). The twisted stem portion was between these two. The top of the goblet was shaped. A hole was drilled to the depth of the top. By drilling the hole with the gouge there was no nipple formation in the bottom. The goblet was then hollowed. The outer surface was reinforced with toilet tissue held against it with his fingers. This prevented vibration and the noise associated with the goblet portion being so far removed from the headstock. Several different gouges were used to do the hollowing. The wall of the goblet at the opening was then thinned. This was done last to maintain stability while hollowing. The goblet was then sanded from the bottom outward or upward using a sanding stick. It is important to go through the grits from bottom upwards to avoid scratching. Try to avoid heat build-up when sanding so that heat checks do not occur. A nylon extension of the tailstock was placed into the goblet for stability when turning the stem. The outer surface of the goblet was refined. The area where the stem and the goblet meet was then formed and the goblet portion sanded on the outer surface up to 800 grit.

A small bead was formed at the base of the goblet and the top of the stem. Then a #1 cut was used to define the base of the stem and a bead formed at that end. This bead should be the same or bigger than the bead at the top of the stem. The stem was then roughed and finished with the skew. It was sanded. A triple twist was developed using a round file. Chain saw files were used to clean up the twist. Cloth backed sandpaper torn in strips was used to further clean the twist. Cloth was then used to buff it. The base was parted off. This completed the triple twist goblet.

A pigtail twist was then shown using a 2x2x8 inch piece. The piece was tapered which determines the length of the pigtail. The tip of the tail always points centrally. The design of the twist was shown and can be seen in detail on the upcoming DVD of this demonstration. The Arbortech was used to carve the twist. By changing the angle of the tool the shape of the twist can be defined. The Foredom tool was then used to further shape the twist. The piece was parted off. Various uses of the pigtail twist can be seen on Stuart’s web site. This completed the morning demonstration.

Afternoon Session:

Twisted Wall Hollow Form: A piece of American cherry was placed between centers and roughed using a gouge with sweptback wings. A tenon was turned to fit into the Stronghold chuck. The piece was then further roughed into a cylindrical shape. The tailstock end was rounded. This would become the top of the vessel. The base of the vessel was shaped. (Do not make the diameter of the vessel bottom smaller than the chuck spigot. If you do, you will get vibrations.) The parameters of the twist were determined. Twelve horizontal lines were drawn. Stuart used the chuck as a reference for these lines but a pin-indexing system could also be used. The tool rest can be used to guide the pencil and produce straight lines. The twist design was laid out. (Again refer to the DVD for details.) Cutting was then begun using the Arbortech. Three cuts were performed and they are:

#1. The first is a shallow cut to mark the twist line. Each of the twelve twist lines is cut.

#2. The second cut is made three-eighths inch deep. Each twist is cut and the cuts should be square to the surface of the vessel.

#3. Cut one twist deep – skip the next two. Then cut the fourth deep and so on around the vessel.

The tailstock was removed. A hole was drilled with the gouge to the depth of the gouge. Hollowing was done until the pre-cut twist lines were reached. Three tools were used to hollow. Progressively heavier tools were used as the depth was advanced. Light pulling cuts were made, then heavier cuts going downhill. If you think the wood you are using feels a little “shaky” then you should use CA glue to strengthen the twists (bines). Once the bines were the proper thickness the deeper portions of the vessel were hollowed. Once hollowed the Stewart System was used to clean up.

The tailstock was brought back into place and the light with a #2 MT mounted into it and placed inside the piece. The outer surface of the lower half of the vessel was defined to achieve final wall thickness. The upper and lower ends of the twist were defined and, using the Arbortech, the twists were further cut and shaped, especially at the upper ends of each twist near the neck of the vessel. The palm plane was then used to cut the edges off each twist on the outside. The Foredom rotary cutter was used to cut the edges off the flats on the inside. It can also be used to redesign the upper ends of each bine. The headstock was locked and sanding strips were used to sand and make round each bine. Progressive grits can be used. A sanding stick can be used to sand the inside of the piece.

The tailstock was brought up and further refinement of the outside of the lower part of the vessel was done including the base. A spigot was formed so that the piece could be finished at a later date. A bead was formed on the top at the mouth of the vessel. It was then parted off.

Next a hollow form was made using translucency to determine the wall thickness and the heat from the bulb to speed up the drying process. A cross section of a soft maple log was used. It was centered pith to pith and a tenon formed on the tailstock end. It was placed in the chuck and roughed to shape. The piece was then drilled in preparation for hollowing which was done in stages. The first being the formation of a dovetail shaped evacuation of the inside. This permitted shavings to be more easily evacuated. Then the area inside the opening was hollowed going downhill. The Stewart tool was used to get into deeper parts of the vessel and to clean up other interior wall areas.

A 40 watt light was then placed in the vessel and the outer surface turned until a uniform wall thickness was achieved. A tenon was turned and the piece parted off. Holes were drilled into the end grain of the tenon and CA glue would be placed into these holes. This would stabilize the tenon so it could be later inserted into a base.

The final part of the demonstration was a twisted finial. A 2x2x7 inch piece was roughed into a cylinder. A four star twist was laid out and the Arbortech was used to cut the twist lines. These cuts were deep and they opened up the middle of the piece. The twists were then rounded off with the rotary tool. This completed a very detailed, informative and entertaining demonstration. For those interested in attempting the above, please refer to the DVD that will be available in the CMW library in the next month.

--Bob Gunther

Stuart's Web Site